So i want to buy a Better HU, Which path will i take?

[ModifierMR]

Ok...so right now i gots $450 or so. And i want to buy a higher quality HU than my Panasonic CQ-7301. The 3 listed below are my choices based off a few sites, None of the ones below are ebay.

What do you guys have for suggestions? If anyone has some nice HQ Head Units in my price range i will gladly take them off your hands

1. Alpine CDA-9855 ~ $389
2. Clarion DXZ935
3. Kenwood eXcelon KDC-X889

[sajnaj]

eclipse 8453 i think i love mine. cant beat the sound quality in my opion.

[TakeABao]

All of those HU's you mentioned are crap for the money.

Here's what I recommend:

Eclipse 8053 (just ignore Rob's horror story) ~$350 brand new in box
Pioneer Premier 860MP ~ same
Alpine 9835 ~ if you can still find one new, they'll run you about $300 in MINT condition.

There are plenty of options available to you depending "how old school" you wanna get and exactly what kinda bells n' whistles you want/need.

Those are my top 3 for your purposes.

[RningOnFumes]

quick question: what makes the premier a premier over a regular pioneer?

[TakeABao]

Originally Posted by RningOnFumes

quick question: what makes the premier a premier over a regular pioneer?

In the case of the 860MP (Premier) and 8600MP (Pioneer), the only major difference is the pre-out voltage (6.5V vs. 4V). That and a 2 year warranty vs. 1 year for the Pioneer little cousin.

The Premier lineup is traditionally Pioneer's higher-end.

[cam2Xrunner]

Choice 2 and 3 does not have the processing capabilites for an active setup(should you chose to wire active)

The 9855 I just wouldn't reccomend.

The dehp860MP is a good choice for about 300. (or 960mp if you like the style, more money too but not much)

The Eclipse CD8053 can be had BNIB for about 300 shipped. It doesn't play MP3's, or have a detacheable face(you might not care) and the build quality is not up to par to different offerings but it is a nice headunit that has alot of control and has good sound quality.

If you can drop another 200 there is a mint DRZ9255 on the used market right now.

If you want to go with Alpine, the only thing I would reccomend is the route Ray is going with the 9860 and the PXA-H701, on the plus side you can also hook up a Video screen and watch DVD's.

[sq_camry]

Originally Posted by TakeABao

All of those HU's you mentioned are crap for the money.

Here's what I recommend:

Eclipse 8053 (just ignore Rob's horror story) ~$350 brand new in box
Pioneer Premier 860MP ~ same
Alpine 9835 ~ if you can still find one new, they'll run you about $300 in MINT condition.

There are plenty of options available to you depending "how old school" you wanna get and exactly what kinda bells n' whistles you want/need.

Those are my top 3 for your purposes.

try to get the alpine or the pioneer

the controls are fukky with the eclipse... its a good hu, but the controls suck

[TakeABao]

Originally Posted by cam2Xrunner

If you want to go with Alpine, the only thing I would reccomend is the route Ray is going with the 9860 and the PXA-H701, on the plus side you can also hook up a Video screen and watch DVD's.

For your level of understanding right now, it would be far more cost efficient to just get a used DRZ9255 instead of doing the 9860 / H701 deck+preamp combo. Wayyyyy easier to install and probably a helluva lot easier to tune.